From Stroller to Sprinter

Walker Becomes Prairie Grove’s First College Track Signee

Photo by Mike Capshaw/Enterprise-Leader Prairie Grove’s Sydney Walker said he slaps his quads "to stimulate the nerves, to get the muscles firing" as part of his ritual before each race.
Photo by Mike Capshaw/Enterprise-Leader Prairie Grove’s Sydney Walker said he slaps his quads "to stimulate the nerves, to get the muscles firing" as part of his ritual before each race.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- His childhood home set the course.

His mom set the pace.

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Sydney Walker

Sport: Track & Field

School: Prairie Grove

Class: Senior

Notable: Class 1A-4A State Indoor record holder in the 200-meter run (20.68 seconds)

Quotable: “This year, I have not set any personal records — But I have some meets left.”

Sydney Walker's path to becoming Prairie Grove High's first college track signee was forged before he could even walk. The senior sprinter signed with Central Missouri during a ceremony in his school's cafeteria on April 20.

Sydney's mom, Tracy, was a middle school track coach in Monroe City, Mo., a small town known for producing big-time track stars.

"I've always loved track," Walker said. "When I was little, me and Sol [his brother, Solomon] couldn't even walk and everybody tells me we would be in a stroller and my mom would push it around while she was coaching her team."

Once he learned to walk -- and eventually sprint, of course -- Tracy Walker quickly had to set limits for her two young sons whenever they would join her on the infield.

"He grew up hanging out at track practice and track meets," Tracy Walker said. "The rule was, 'Stay inside the football field.' That was like the boundary, so he's just grown up with it."

Sydney Walker said Monroe City is "like a track capital" because "multiple athletes haves signed Division I track scholarships" from the town of only 2,500 people. Last season, the Panthers' track teams swept the Class 2, District 2 boys and girls titles and the boys went on to finish runner-up at the state meet.

"He was very fortunate because there were a lot of volunteer coaches up there who helped all of the kids, and he benefitted from that," Tracy Walker said.

One of the coaches who influenced Sydney Walker the most was Ryan Banta. They crossed paths during a sprints camp at the University of Missouri when Walker was in middle school.

Walker called Banta "one of the elite sprints coaches around the country," and said he's the culprit behind Walker's pre-race ritual.

"[Banta] always taught that what you do before the race should be the same every time," Walker said. "It gets you to relax and it gets me mentally ready for every race ... I mean, somebody could have just gotten shot on the infield, or I could have just ran a world record, but it wouldn't faze me because I'm so mentally focused on the next run."

Regardless of if Walker's about to run the 100, 200 or 400 meters, the ritual is the same, although he admits it's an abbreviated version before he sprints the 400.

"First thing I do is I thank God for what I do and ask for Him to protect me right there as I give a sign of the cross," Walker said. "Then, I slap my legs to stimulate the nerves, to get the muscles firing. Then, I jump because explosion is really key for coming out of the blocks. Then, I crawl back in (to the starting blocks) instead of just sitting down in it.

"That's my ritual and I try to do it every single time."

Walker moved to Prairie Grove before his freshman year. He played running back on the Tigers' football team, which was coached by John Elder, who's now Walker's track coach.

"He did a great job at running back, but he stopped playing to focus on track and it's obviously paid off for him," Elder said. "He's definitely deserving [of a scholarship.] He's a great sprinter and an athlete who works extremely hard. He does a lot of things on his own, works a lot in the offseason and even goes to a lot of meets in the winter that his parents take him to, so his parents are very dedicated, too."

Other Division II programs showed interest, such as Missouri Southern and Pittsburg State, among others, but the recruiting process essentially ended after Walker's visit to Central Missouri this past winter.

"When I went on a visit to Central Missouri, I pretty much stopped looking," Walker said. "I liked the large-school atmosphere, the high-level track facilities and equipment ... But it was kind of dialed back where it was in a little smaller town [Warrensburg, Mo.]. It felt like home. The whole time I looked around, it just felt right."

And it sounds like all those track meets spent with mom in the stroller will impact more than just Walker's athletic career.

"I really feel like I'm meant to be a [track] coach," Walker said. "I really enjoyed working with the junior high this year, the sprinters and hurdlers, and they've done very well. I believe I'm going to do something in exercise science, get a major in that, and then become a coach. I've already been USATF certified fundamentally and this summer I'm going to go to Level I training for sprints and hurdles, so then that will qualify me to be a college coach once I pass that.

"My dad [Sean Walker] was a football coach, but I really love track because track was my best gift that God blessed me with and I just feel like I need to go down that path."

It's the same path Walker's been on since before he could even walk.

Sports on 04/27/2016